Reporter has a blast at opener of Midland's future minor league baseball team

Published
8:00 pm EDT, Saturday, April 8, 2006

I went to Thursday night's Midwest League season opener at Oldsmobile Park between the Lansing Lugnuts and the Battle Creek-based Southwest Michigan Devil Rays - who will be relocating to Midland next season.

One year from this weekend, fans in the Midland area will begin experiencing the excitement of minor league baseball. And if the atmosphere is anything like it is in Lansing, they have a great deal to look forward to.

I went to Thursday night's Midwest League season opener at Oldsmobile Park between the Lansing Lugnuts and the Battle Creek-based Southwest Michigan Devil Rays - who will be relocating to Midland next season.

In some ways, attending a minor league game is better than attending games at the major league level. The lines to get in and out of the stadium are shorter and - here's the big thing - it's a heck of a lot cheaper. More on that later.

I arrived at the park about 45 minutes before game time. I walked up to the ticket booth and bought a box seat for $9. My seat was in Section J, Row 12, Seat 10 - almost directly behind home plate. I couldn't have had a better seat if I had asked for one, unless I was in one of the luxury boxes munching down free hors d'oeuvres.

Since it was Opening Night, the Lugnuts had a number of pre-game ceremonies on the field. Representatives from various local organizations were on hand to throw out a series of first pitches.

After the teams were introduced and the Lugnuts took the field, the first pitch by Lugnuts' starter Chi-Hung Cheng was thrown out at 7:07 p.m. The public address announcer informed the crowd that the game-time temperature was a balmy 61 degrees, which produced a huge cheer. I certainly picked a good night to go. (The next night's game was snowed out.)

I watched the first four innings from my seat before deciding to wander around the park. I noticed that minor league games are more of a social event than anything else. Some fans get into the game, while others just enjoy the atmosphere.

Some young kids were playing on the jungle gym in left field. Many families were enjoying food and drinks at the picnic pavilion, while the older fans scoured through their programs to familiarize themselves with the Lugnuts' team.

And college students were well represented.

Each Thursday at Olds Park is Molson's Thirsty Thursday. Fans can have tap beer and wings for $2. Cheap beer, opening night and warm weather brought students from Michigan State University and Lansing Community College out in droves. They made up a good chunk of the 8,257 in attendance.

The influx of students created extremely long lines at every concession stand. Most were students going back for refills, but some were in line to get a late-game snack. The lines finally receded when alcohol sales were stopped in the eighth inning - a stadium policy.

Minor league baseball is also about entertaining the fans - and the Lugnuts do a great job of it. At the end of nearly every inning, something is going on that involves the fans.

The middle of the second inning featured a human tug-of-war. Two competitors were strapped to each end of a bungee cord, and mini-hoola hoops were placed about 20 feet away from each competitor. The object was to get to the hoop while dragging your opponent, pick up the hoop and drop it around a big inflatable Labatt beer bottle. The two-minute struggle between the competitors created quite a buzz from the crowd.

At the end of the second inning, it was time for "Name that Tune." Two chosen contestants, standing at the Devil Rays' dugout, bid to see which one could name a song in the fewest seconds. The lowest bid was six seconds. The ensuing song was Journey's "Don't Stop Believing," - but much to everyone's dismay, the fan couldn't name it.

They shot hot dogs into the stands in the third inning and a few innings later, Lugnuts T-shirts were fired into the stands. There was a hamster ball race. Two competitors were placed in separate big plastic balls and raced from centerfield to near home plate.

The big television screen on the centerfield scoreboard also provided entertainment. They played hilarious clips from movies involving baseball. My favorite was Leslie Nielsen's umpiring performance near the end of The Naked Gun.

If it's your birthday, let the Lugnuts know and they'll put your name up on the scoreboard screen.

In sticking with tradition, fans sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh-inning stretch.

Thursday was the 11th opening day in Lugnuts history, and Lansing's Timothy Bowman has been to every one of them.

"It's great to have this in your hometown," Bowman said. "You don't have to go all the way to Detroit. They have a lot of fun stuff here."

So how much does all this cost? It's very minimal compared to a game at Comerica Park. My grand total - which included parking, ticket, program, bratwurst, fries and a Coke - came to $24.

Box seats are $9, reserved seats $8 and general admission is $7. A game program is $3. A lot of food items - wings, chicken sandwich, pizza, cheeseburger - cost $5. You can get combo dinners for $7.50. Beer on normal nights is $5, while peanuts and Cracker Jacks are $3.50.

A trip to the gift shop will cost you a bit. Hats are $16, golf shirts run in the $25-$50 range while T-shirts average about $18.

As for the game, the Lugnuts gave the fans plenty to cheer about. The game was tied 3-3 before Lansing scored two runs in the fifth, three in the sixth and one in the seventh for a 9-3 victory. Although it's Class A baseball, I found the quality of play was pretty solid.

Since the Lugnuts won, the players tossed souvenir baseballs into the stands - another clever promotion.

Following the game, the stadium lights darkened and the skies over left field were illuminated by a electrifying fireworks display, capping the night's festivities.

If you haven't experienced a minor league game, you can get a sneak peek before next year. The Lugnuts have 69 home games remaining, as do the Devil Rays in Battle Creek before they make their new home in Midland.